Chapter 6 – The First Step Forward
The next morning felt different—not because anything had dramatically changed, but because Mehar's world had quietly shifted. The invisible wall she'd kept up between herself and the rest of the world had finally cracked, letting in someone she never expected: Aarav.
As she walked through the school gates, everything felt sharper—brighter. The crisp sound of morning chatter, the click of her shoes against the pavement, the breeze brushing against her skin. It was as though her senses had come alive with the reality of what was slowly beginning.
Inside the building, her phone buzzed.
Aarav: Good morning. Let's survive math together today?
Mehar couldn't help but smile.
Mehar: If I fail, I'm blaming you.
Aarav: Deal.
They sat next to each other in class for the first time since everything had changed. There was an unspoken ease between them, but also a tension they were both learning to navigate. Small glances. Quiet smiles. The kind of silence that felt full rather than empty.
After class, Aarav waited by her locker.
"I was thinking," he said as she approached, "we should do something. Outside of school."
"Like a date?" she asked, the word feeling strange but exciting on her tongue.
He chuckled. "Like a non-date… unless you want it to be."
"I'll think about it," she teased.
A few steps away, Aarav leaned against the lockers while she packed up her bag. "You know," he said, "you're not what I expected."
Mehar turned to him. "In a good way or a bad way?"
"In a way that makes it really hard to stop thinking about you."
Her breath caught, but she quickly masked it with a dry laugh. "You're getting good at this."
"I mean it." He looked at her, more serious now. "Whatever this is, I want to do it right. No secrets. No pretending."
Mehar stared at him for a moment. "Then promise me something."
"Anything."
"Don't let this be temporary."
He didn't hesitate. "I won't."
They walked out of school together, side by side. No holding hands, no labels yet. But there was something forming—solid and slow and real.
The first step wasn't loud or dramatic.
It was two people choosing each other.
And for Mehar, that was everything.